The bandit rose and gently touchedKonic’s sleeve. “Let us walk,” he simply whispered and strode outthe door of the inn. Konic rose unsteadily and followed. The mancould easily kill him outside and be out of town before anyone evennoticed, but Konic had a duty to his son that nobody would frightenhim out of. When Master Clava had gone through the door, he saw thebandit leaning lazily against a post as if he had not a care in theworld. He was holding the star weapon in his right hand.

“Was this given to you by yourson?” the bandit asked.

“His friend,” Konic responded.“The son of my friend. He says you almost killed him withit.”

The bandit just nodded and before Konicrealized it, the man in black had three of the stars in his hands.He turned casually and nodded at a sign across the street. Thebandit threw the three stars, one at a time, at the sign. All threeof them landed inside a letter O in the sign. “If I had wanted toharm the boy, rest assured that you would not now be talking to meabout him.”

Konic followed the bandit across thestreet to retrieve the stars with his mouth hanging open. “The boywas attempting to sneak into my campsite and thought no one couldhear him. I scared him away. That is all there is toit.”

Konic nodded as the bandit pried thethree stars out of the sign. He handed one of them to Konic.“Return this to Tedi, that it might remind him to neverunderestimate his opponent. It is called a Lanoirian Star and it isa potent weapon in experienced hands. Perhaps he will learn how touse it.”

Konic stared at the bandit. “How is itthat you know the boy’s name?” he demanded.

The bandit sat on the stoop of thebuilding, the other two stars already put back wherever theybelonged. “I overheard him and Arik, who I suppose is your son,talking in the woods about some witch in a blue dress. They were onan animal path just west of the coastal highway. Arik was trying tofind Tedi and finally succeeded. Do you know who this witchis?”